§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures she has taken to tighten security at(a) airports and (b) sea ports to ensure that illegal meat is not smuggled into the UK. [20778]
§ Mr. MorleyChecks on meat imported at airports and sea ports is the responsibility of the local authority in which the port or sea port is situated. DEFRA officials are co-ordinating a number of initiatives, involving interested Government Departments and local authority enforcement bodies, aimed at ensuring that rules for importing animal products are enforced effectively and efficiently. We have taken action to improve publicity to travellers about import rules, to improve the collection and analysis of information about illegal imports and to use that information to better target enforcement activity. We are keeping these measures under constant review and we are looking at a wide range of other options for improvements, including, for example, the use of sniffer dogs, X-ray machines, on-the-spot-fines and changes to administrative structures.
§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures she has taken to create a properly funded single regulatory 851W body to apply best international practice at UK sea and airports to protect humans and animals from smuggled contaminated meats. [20779]
§ Mr. MorleyNone. No decision has been taken that a single regulatory body is the best way to enforce import controls.